Influence Of Bowie

Recently, I got news of David Bowie's release of his two- CD set of A Reality Tour from 2003/2004. I decided to give it a listen, after all, not only was this one of the longest world tours in history, its Bowie. Re-listening to tracks like, All the Young Dudes or The Man Who Sold the World, and even China Girl, reminded me of how Bowie's career has been significant throughout the years. Not only has he constantly reinvented himself, he's also been vastly influential to our pop culture.
Since early on, he's worked with a huge number of artists from a variety of genres. Working with talents that range from Iggy Pop and Lou Reed to John Lennon and Queen, the man's hung out, produced and recorded everyone and anyone that's been big in music in the last 40 years. The surprising thing is his influence has not died down throughout the years. It's not like we've stopped reading or hearing references to Bowie. We're constantly reminded of his contributions in music, fashion and even pop culture all the time! Haven't we all heard phrases like: her makeup is reminiscent of Bowie or his song is just like Bowie's X song around his X era.? Even artist as diverse as Marylyn Manson and Lady Gaga (!?) owe part of their style to him.
My generation is no exception. Bowie has worked with modern acts such as The Pixies' Black Francis in songs like Fashion and Nine Inch Nail's Trent Reznor on the song "The Hearts Filthy Lesson". His music has appeared in movies like the cult films Life Aquatic and (of course) Labyrinth, as well as, promoted new artists into the mainstream eye. Some of the best examples are The Arcade Fire and TV on The Radio who owe a lot of their popularity to his recognition.
One has to remember, I'm talking about a man that has suffered from heart attacks, drug addictions, identity issues and just keeps coming back with some of the most innovative music in pop culture. The fact is that Bowie is still as relevant as ever and I'm sure he'll keep putting newer artist to shame for many years to come.
Gabriel Rodrigez